How to roadmap your writing journey

Stages in planning your writing

Today writer’s coach Leda Sammarco explains how to put a piece of writing together:

I hope that my post last month, ‘Ask not what, but why you want to write’ has given you some ideas. The next thing to consider is how to develop a structure for your writing. Remember that you are taking the reader on a journey and you want to be clear about where you are taking them. There may be a specific number of steps which the reader needs to follow or individual elements involved in learning a new skill or embarking on a new venture.

Start by identifying the key stages and list them along with a short description. You can develop each one with additional information, case studies or anecdotes (readers relate to these and feel they aren’t alone) and even exercises or activities for them to do. At the beginning of an article or a chapter you can draw the reader in with a question, a startling fact or statistic or a compelling anecdote. At the end, go out in style with something memorable or an inspirational quote.

For example:

Networking for Newbies: 7 steps to building successful business relationships

1. Find your network: there are many different types of networking groups (breakfast meetings, women only etc). Do some research and find the right one for you. Includes author story of how she joined her first group.

2. Know yourself: You may be asked what you do or what you are looking for, so be ready with an answer that is clear, succinct and engaging. Includes an exercise on writing your elevator pitch.

3. Become a trusted source: Don’t try to sell yourself. Be open and friendly and see what you can offer whether it is an introduction to someone or a useful piece of information.

4. Set your goals

5. Learn how to network online

6. To be continued…

7. To be continued…

Roadmap your writing journey from the outset and it will help you to be more creative along the way. And above all, enjoy it!

Leda Sammarco empowers spiritual entrepreneurs who are writing their first book. She works with authors in a partnership way to help them write their book and get it out into the world.

Click here for all posts by Leda Sammarco, writer’s coach.